Dr. Withholding pathology reports

Gingercookie3 - I sense your anxiousness. My situation can't be compared but my OBGYN told me it can take up to 4 wks for results. Why? Many reasons, one being EVERTHING where I live is on backlog due to Covid priorities. I imagine lower staffing, spacing of personnel requirements, who knows. Even my operation was booked at her first avail appointment that was 6 months away from the consultation because operating room openings were minimal due to covid and cancer patients given priority over elective surgery - which, although they feared my fibroid might be cancerous, was considered elective surgery. OBGYNs are also on call for baby deliveries and have their own backlogs.

We are all under a season of learning. I have learned my patience is lower. Things seem to take longer.

Try not to overthink and worry or assign blame until you know the story of why you haven't been given your results yet. You have a portal that sounds amazing. We don't have that here yet in Ontario, Canada. But neither do we have to pay for any of our medical care including biopsies.

Stay calm, and look after your healing. If you look up other posts where they were told it was cancer, you may see they had to wait for treatment anyhow to let their body heal first.

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Originally Posted by Jammywammy Wow, is this patient portal an American thing? The only portal I have in ON Canada, that I know of, is my LifeLab results and paps , ecgs...are undercover. I was told I'd be told at my six wks appt. But at my day 13 followup the results were in so she told me by phone.

I don't know that patient portals are just an American thing but I have grown to like them. I can get copies of my tests a lot quicker and I can communicate with my doctors a lot easier.

portals are great but should never take the place of a professional giving you the results first. believe me you read those reports and can take it to mean something very different and usually worse. I don't know where any are posting from including the OP (maybe I missed it) but path reports normally don't take more than a week here in my state Mn. and to be honest mine came back in the heart of covid within a few days of the surgery. I understand that may not be the case for everyone but I still advocate for getting the answers from a higher authority.

I am in TX. My doctor told me via message on the patient portal that she would review my pathology with me at the 6 week follow up. I understand her not wanting me to see the results without her to explain them, but making me wait so long just feels cruel.

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Originally Posted by Turaj portals are great but should never take the place of a professional giving you the results first. believe me you read those reports and can take it to mean something very different and usually worse. I don't know where any are posting from including the OP (maybe I missed it) but path reports normally don't take more than a week here in my state Mn. and to be honest mine came back in the heart of covid within a few days of the surgery. I understand that may not be the case for everyone but I still advocate for getting the answers from a higher authority.

I also have seen where women have started chemo 2 weeks after surgery. So I don’t want her delay to result in a delay of treatment for me. If I need a referral I’d like to already start that process instead of it being another 6 weeks after my follow up to get into an oncologist.

Now I have an extremely swollen bump under my armpit. I am seeing my GP tomorrow for it, but I think his job making a diagnosis would be much easier with the pathology results. In case it’s a swollen lymph node from cancer.

Got my path report same day at the civilian hospital where I had my hysterectomy. When I woke up, Gyn-onc talked to me with what he knew and thought, and a couple/few hours later he woke me up again to give me the path results. The hospital provided a printed copy with my discharge papers and results were in my patient portal NOT embargoed at the same time doc got the results.


Wish the VA were like this . . .

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Originally Posted by Gingercookie3 I am in TX. My doctor told me via message on the patient portal that she would review my pathology with me at the 6 week follow up. I understand her not wanting me to see the results without her to explain them, but making me wait so long just feels cruel.

Ginger have you made any calls to someone that might be able to help ie the Chair of the Dept. In reading more of your posts it is clear that you are sort of like me...you will be having stress, concerns about maybe related health symptoms for 6 weeks. Don't do this to yourself. They have those results and should share with you. There is an initial pathology done as the surgery is done and then samples are sent out. I had cancer...and that was the process...the samples sent out to confirm original diagnosis came within a few days and a call was made to me. I was relieved it was not more than original...if you told me I had to wait 6 weeks I would have gone crazy. I hope you take some action. and please report back. Maybe some patients are fine with a delay like that but you are not and its your health.